New Majority Owners Of World TeamTennis Will Team Up To Focus On Growth Of League

March 15, 2017

Fred Luddy, who on Monday acquired Billie Jean King's majority stake in Mylan World TeamTennis with Mark Ein, said that there was discussion among WTT owners that they "would all share ownership of the league, but it was decided that WTT would be better served by Ein and Luddy teaming up to focus on growth in the future," according to Tod Leonard of the SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Luddy said that he is "making a significant financial investment." Luddy said of Ein, "He has a great vision and he has great leadership. He has wonderful connections and is a USTA board member. He’s friends with people at the ATP. I’m really there for moral support and to be a sounding board." He added, "There is definitely a lot of packaging and promotion that has to be done in the right way. The other thing is that Mark and I are coming into the league having a little more money to spend. We should be able to reach more people." In Luddy's three seasons owning the San Diego Aviators, the team has been "challenged by getting the word out." Luddy said that the Aviators "averaged about 1,100 fans at matches last summer, and he was pleased with that" because it was up 20-30% from the previous season (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 3/15).